After a four-year absence from GW, Delta Tau Delta initiated their first pledge class of 57 members last week in a public ceremony held in the Marvin Center.

Members of American University’s chapter of Delta Tau Delta and fraternity alumni assisted in the chapter’s recolonization. The fraternity, which was suspended by the University in 2004 for hazing, began recruiting new members in October.

The ceremony consisted of the reading of the Delta Tau Delta creed and the lighting of a candle for each of the three stanzas of the creed. After agreeing to adhere to the organization’s values, each new member was given their Delta Tau Delta badge.

“The Delta creed from this moment forward will be your guiding light just as these candles have illuminated the room,” said Jack Kreman, the director of chapter services for Delta Tau Delta.

Kreman said the fraternity was first established at GW in 1903 and would have celebrated its 105th year anniversary at the University were it not for the four-year hiatus. He said the reason for this absence was “that the brothers of that time did not live up to our Delta creed.”

“The organization now has a great new group of guys who will pick up the Delta Tau Delta flag and run with it,” he said.

Kreman thanked the Greek-letter community as a whole for its willingness to support the recolonization effort. Because Delta Tau Delta relies on a referral-based recruitment system in which other Greek organizations recommended potential pledges, he also thanked the Greek-letter community for their help with the recruitment.

The sororities with the most referrals were awarded monetary donations for their philanthropic organizations. Chi Omega’s organization, the Make-a-Wish Foundation, was awarded $250, Alpha Delta Pi’s organization, The Ronald McDonald House, was awarded $100 and Pi Beta Phi’s organization, First Book, was awarded $50.

Two pledges, sophomore Ryan Gever and freshman Ryan Delzer, were awarded book scholarships of $300 each. They submitted an online application to be considered for these scholarships.

The chapter’s flag was presented to junior Alex Hills, the chapter’s new president, and freshman Patrick Cox, the new recruitment officer.

The pledges will now embark on an eight-week pledging period to learn about the organization’s history and set a vision and direction for their chapter, said Nick Aylward, the chapter leadership consultant for the GW chapter.